Make an Impression
by Mia-Zeklos
Summary: Rodolphus is unfortunate enough to end up with Bellatrix Black as a Potion homework partner. Their work together, however, leads them to things they haven't realized before.
1. First sight

**Author's notes: Written for WitAngerandBravery's Hunger Games Quote Challenge on the Harry Potter Challenges Forum. Well, since I signed for the competition yesterday or today morning, I'm not really sure, this is not the best I could do, but I'm actually satisfied with it. It's not that bad. And plus, the idea was there and I just couldn't resist it. I hope you like it and a review or two really won't hurt. (: **

**P.S.: Oh, by the way, another fic for one of the Black sisters, can you believe it? I'm sure it was so unexpected from me to do such a thing…**

**Anyway. On with the story. My quote was…**

"_I noticed just about every girl, but none of them made a lasting  
impression but you."_

"Evan!" Rod shouted nervously. Evan was missing and he had to pick up a partner for the Potions homework professor Slughorn had given them. The boy turned all around, but still couldn't see the short curly blond hair of Evan Rosier in the crowd of fourth-years searching for their friends for the same reason. "Evan, where are…."

"Don't bother. I saw him a few minutes ago and he's Avery's partner already." Rodolphus heard a soft purr right behind him; a girl's voice, definitely. "And plus, you're going to be _my _partner."

Rod raised an eyebrow as he turned back and saw Bellatrix Black.

His witty response died in the second he actually decided to say it. Not just because the girl was scaring him a bit every time she looked at his eyes at all. But also because he was pretty impressed.

He knew her, of course. Bellatrix Black, a fourth-year Slytherin, just like him. He had seen her thousands of times before, but now – maybe because he hadn't paid much attention to her as an actual girl – it seemed different to him.

Rodolphus had seen many beautiful girls in his life. Not just in school; most of the daughters of the families his father associated with had at least one daughter, and most of them were pretty. The boy was looking at them as he would look at rare art pieces – he was appreciating their appearance, but most of them were stupid, boring, too girly or something like that.

He had met Bellatrix a few times before also. The Blacks were a family his father liked too. And every time, she stunned Rod.

It wasn't only about how she looked like – and she was a hell of a girl. He had rarely seen such a thick, shiny tresses as the ones falling down her back like a waterfall made of pure darkness. Her body had that perfect hourglass figure he liked so much – and such a body was a pretty rare thing for a fourteen-year-old girl. Her deep eyes were almost black, but still they were almost burning as Bellatrix was staring at him pointedly.

"And why would I do that?" he managed at least. The girl looked at him, surprised.

"Any other ideas?" she asked as politely as she possibly could, but her eyes were beginning to gleam in that dangerous way Rodolphus knew very well.

"Of course. McNair, maybe?" he dared to say. Bellatrix rolled her eyes.

"McNair is an idiot and you know it. You're not that stupid, or at least that's what I think. Actually, one of the few people in this classroom who have more than just one brain cell. So, shall we?" She gestured to the other students, who were already taking the ingredients they needed for the homework. Rod sighed.

"Sure."

o.O.o

Rod sat on the ground, a few feet away from the school, and watched Bellatrix as she put the last thing needed in the brewing potion on the charmed fire they had created. It was the day after he had agreed to do said homework with her, and he was regretting this decision more and more with every minute.

Truth was that they needed to brew this potion for a week. So Rod got to spend at least an hour after the classes with this psychotic girl, every day. Even the weekend. He soon found out that excuses such as a Quidditch practice in Saturday don't work with Bellatrix. She didn't want to fail, so Rodolphus had to do whatever it was needed for the stupid potion to be successful.

Bellatrix sat next to him and they started watching the cauldron – they had to say some spell he couldn't remember on every twenty minutes, so they had to watch over it. For a few minutes, they just stood there in a comfortable silence, broken only by that little sound the crickets made at twilight.

"You shall stay with the potion tonight." Bellatrix said commandingly, nodding at the cauldron and then looking at Rod with that determined look in her eyes. "Tomorrow night it's my turn."

He just shrugged. He didn't care if he had to stay awake tonight or some other night of the week; actually, the sooner they two were separated, the better. Even if he had to spend the night in the common room, guarding over a potion he didn't care about.

Rod dared to look at her once again when she was distracted by the potion that had started boiling with no real explanation. She was scowling at the thing, poking the cauldron with her wand and muttering spells. But as she was getting angrier and angrier at it, Rodolphus was smiling. If he could actually say that she can be adorable, it was now, when she was slightly pissed off.

At least, he heard her making some tiny noise of anger and waved with her wand at the thing on the fire they had created.

"Stop!" Rod heard himself saying. Bellatrix raised her head and frowned at him.

"What do you want?" she asked. That was actually her usual answer when anybody was saying anything, so Rod didn't bother counting it as an offense.

"If you throw your wand in the potion, nothing better would happen." He reasoned, then stood up and approached her. "Try freezing it for a minute or two. It might cool down a bit, so it won't boil anymore."

She pursed her lips, but did what he told her to, with obvious unease. Rod's lips curled into a slight smile. She didn't like being told what to do, but he was glad that he had done it without getting hexed in the same instant.

"Wipe off that smirk from your lips, Lestrange!" the girl sneered at him when she saw him grinning at her. She raised her wand, but didn't do anything with it, except pointing it at him as a warning. "Just because you were right this time, doesn't mean it's going to happen often. You're still not smarter than me."

"Surely enough, Black." He answered innocently, but he didn't fear her that much anymore now, when she was talking almost as any other girl he knew, but maybe a bit more haughtily. Maybe she wasn't that bad after all, he thought, as he watched her giving him a death glare every now and then while she was trying to bring the potion back to its original state. Actually, Rod found her pretty funny. She had a lot of flaws, but that was actually her charm. None of the girls he had ever fancied had this sort of… fire inside them. That was why she had made such a strong impression to him.

"I'm serious." She said, still not looking at him for more than a second, but probably something in his voice had told her that he was still smirking. The girl stood up, picked up the cauldron and gave it to him. "There you go. I want to see it tomorrow and I want it to be perfect, so don't you dare fall asleep when you should be looking over the potion." She said firmly, then came closer to him and her gaze locked with his so pointedly that he thought her dark brown eyes would burn holes into his.

"I understood you the first time too." Rod said with a polite smile, but it didn't work. She still seemed angry with him for no obvious reason. What he had done wrong? Yes, maybe she didn't like being among equal ones who dare to talk back to her, but she had picked him for a partner after all, hadn't she? He _did_ tell her that it's a bad idea.

"Good." she said. "Because if you do anything wrong, I swear I'll hex you so bad that you won't be able to talk, walk or do anything at all for days, alright?"

"I've never been more scared." Rod tried to make his voice as mocking as possible, but it didn't work, because he was actually quite scared from that determined look in her eyes. "Why do you want this potion to work so well, by the way? What's it supposed to do, actually?" he wandered. For his surprise, her cheeks seemed almost pink for a second.

"Not a concern of yours, Lestrange." Bellatrix murmured, turning her back on him and storming back to the school with her hands turned into fists. "For Merlin's sake, learn to keep your mouth closed and maybe you'll do something acceptable for the first time today."

Yes. She was indeed adorable when she was angry, Rodolphus thought as he was carrying the cauldron with him. Even though he didn't know what she was angry at him for, but he didn't actually mind being treated like that for a change. Most of the girls he had met weren't much of a challenge for him.

He sat on one of the armchairs in the Slytherin common room and left the cauldron next to him. Suddenly, the potion's color started changing, until it reached the blood red color, pretty much resembling the one of his hair.

Surprised, Rod opened the Potions book and searched for some information of the current potion they were trying to brew. Mostly because he didn't know what it was called, he searched for the ingredients he had remembered of all the ones they took from the Potions classroom yesterday.

His eyes widened as he reached the page he was searching for and his lips curled into a smile involuntarily. Maybe Bellatrix's strange behavior had its explanation, he thought while his eyes ran down the list with the instructions, resembling too much the ones of their potion.

_The basic ingredients needed for a fourth-year level Love Potion are…_


	2. Real Partners

_Written also for The Original Horcrux's 'The Sound of Music Quote' competition on the Harry Potter Challenges forum._

**Author's notes: Well, I wanted to make this story multi-chaptered anyway and now I even got a quote from a song in another competition, so here it is. :-) My quote was…**

"_Do you know when I first started loving you?"_

"So." Rod heard her sharp voice and his eyes snapped open. He tried to look as fresh as he could, but he was sure he was failing – actually he had fallen asleep for a few minutes in four o'clock in the morning or something like that. He was about to pass out any second and he knew it.

"So what?" he asked sleepily, trying to hide a yawn. Bellatrix squinted at him.

"You seem quite tired." She pointed out. Rod raised an eyebrow. He didn't know she cared if he was tired or not. But, just when the thought passed through his mind, she continued, apparently feeling obliged to say something bad. "That means you haven't slept tonight. Or not. Soon we'll find out, thought." She said with a tiny smirk. Rod came back to life immediately.

"What'd you mean?" he asked, suddenly feeling pretty much awake. This didn't sound good at all. It was just a love potion, so the result couldn't be that bad, but still… Bellatrix wasn't thinking about trying the potion on him, right? _Right?_

"Well, we don't have Potions today, but tonight it's my turn to stay and look at it, so if something goes wrong, I'll know it's your fault." The girl said airily, untangling her hair from the braid it was in till now and leaving the dark curls fall down her back. "And that's what I'll tell the Professor also."

"Hey!" he protested, but she had already left. Rodolphus took a deep breath and closed slowly his eyes, trying to relax. She was just an arrogant girl. It had no point of talking back to her. Be a gentleman, Rod, be a gentleman, the boy repeated to himself as if the sentence was some kind of a mantra. He wasn't going to be angry at her, he wasn't …

"Hey, Black!" he shouted before he could reconsider if what he was about to say would cost his life or not. And even if all of this went bad for him, he'd know it was worth it. Nobody could talk to him in such a way. Bellatrix turned back at him, raising her eyebrows questioningly.

"Do you know what this thing here is?" Rod asked, pointing down at the cauldron with the potion. Her pale cheeks got the slightest pattern of pink as she answered unsurely. "Of course I know what it is, Lestrange. The potion Slughorn gave us for homework."

"Not really." Rod said; he had already forgotten that he was scared of this girl most of the time he was around her. He sat back in his armchair and smiled at her confidently. "He said we can choose whichever potion we want to. So last night, I was curious what am I staying up a whole night for and checked out Potions book. And guess what I found out?"

Bellatrix approached him with a suspiciously innocent smile and sat lightly on the arm of his chair. Rod knew that there was something pretty wrong with such a behavior when it came to her, but he didn't give up. It was his honor at stake after all, or at least he thought it was.

"What did you find, Rodolphus?" she asked, still smiling at him; her voice nice and even a bit taunting; just like his mother when she was in the 'you're my little boy' mood. But he still looked up at her. The reasonable part of his mind tried to remind him that _one shall not triumph before the victory_, as his father told him so often. But he couldn't resist the temptation of winning an argument with Bellatrix Black without loosing his head in the process.

"It's a love potion." He said triumphantly, but still quite quiet. He liked the girl. He wasn't about to embarrass her in front of the whole Slytherin common room. "A love potion, Black. Whose heart you're trying to captivate, my dear Bella?"

This probably was too much for her. The boy heard a loud _crack _and he felt pain spreading down his nose. Then someone shouted his name, but before he could answer, darkness fell before his sight.

o.O.o

Rod opened his eyes, just to try if he can do it. The pain was gone; he was probably entirely healed. His face still felt a bit weird, though, and he wasn't surprised. Actually, he was almost absolutely sure that Bellatrix had broken his nose.

Bellatrix…. He sat up immediately – now the boy realized that he was lying in a bed in the Hospital wing – and looked around him, spotting the girl in question in the lower right corner of his bed. She was looking at him, seeming almost concerned about him.

"What are you doing here?" he sneered. If he hadn't just woken up, he would probably break her nose in return. The only thing that held him back was the things he was taught during his childhood for years. _Never hit a girl,_ his father would say to him. _No matter what she had done. Women are fragile._ Bellatrix didn't seem fragile at all, though… "You're the one who's fault is it that I'm here. Get the hell away from me!"

"I was angry." She said and shrugged. Like this explained anything at all. "You were mocking me about the potion. So it was actually your fault, you know. I didn't want to do it, but you made me. You should be glad that my wand was in my schoolbag. Your condition could be far worse."

Rod was just looking at her, unable to believe how sure she was in what she was saying. She was _actually_ considering herself right and that was the worst of all. This stupid girl had broken his nose, and told him that it was _his _fault?

"You are mental." He said, shaking his head without looking at her again. "There's no way I'll ever get close to you, you crazy woman. Finish that potion of yours if you want to so much, but leave me alone."

"Rod" Bellatrix whispered and that made him lock his eyes with her dark ones again. They were so deep that he could lose himself in them completely. "I'm sorry." she said. "I didn't want to. You're right. I can't keep my temper." She looked down at her arms. Her lower lip started trembling. "I'm always like that." The girl's voice was still quiet and yet, Rod could hear every word of what she was saying. "That's why people like to keep away from me. I'm awful."

"No, you're not." Rodolphus said immediately. _Yes, she is!_, that annoying reasonable part of his mind said, but he ignored it. "I… I shouldn't talk to you like that too. I forgive you." He assured her.

Suddenly Bellatrix looked up, beaming at him. She had left that heartbreaking look she had in the last minute or two – surprisingly fast shift of emotions, Rod realized, but it was something usual for almost any girl their age he knew – and now seemed positively cheerful.

"Really?"

"Yes… really." Rod said despite himself. He made it seem like it was a big deal to forgive her, but it actually wasn't that hard. It was for the same reason he did everything she told him to, no matter how much he disagreed with it. All he needed to do was to stare again in those deep, dark eyes and he knew that he had already lost.


	3. I Love Rain

_Written also for Cheeky Slytherin Lass' 'Song Title Inspiration' challenge on the Harry Potter Challenges Forum._

**Author's notes: And just when I thought I would go and write the next chapter of any of the other stories waiting for me, a new challenge I liked got in the way and... Actually, I think I'll make this whole story made only from challenge entries. I hope it turns out fine at the end.**

**As for the characters, I know I pictured Rodolphus a bit naïve in this one, but… I don't know. Since I'm used to do what looks right for me, I'll leave him like that for now.**

…**so now, on with the chapter, where the song I've got is…**

"_I Love a Rainy Night"_

There was a thunderstorm outside. Rod could hear it, because some of the windows in Lestrange Manor were opened during the party his parents were giving right now. He sighed in irritation. It was the middle of the Christmas vacation and he couldn't get a decent rest because of all those parties and other stuff he had to attend with his family – or to be the one in whose house said parties were.

However, the question of the night for him was _Where the hell's Bella?_ Since a few months ago, they had become fairly good friends and stayed such even after the potion for their homework was done. Now he was spending a bit too much time with her, or at least that was what most of his friends thought. Especially after everyone knew she had broken his nose without pity.

Rod kept looking around for her. Her parents and sisters were here – he could see Cygnus Black trying to get away from everything, but just a second after, he was dragged back in the ballroom by his wife Druella, who was right now glaring at him. Andromeda Black was sitting in the corner; talking to a guy Rodolphus had barely met before – a Ravenclaw from her year called Xenophilius or something like that. Narcissa Black was refusing to dance with Lucius Malfoy for Merlin knows which time already, but Lucius wasn't giving up yet and kept insisting for a dance.

But no Bellatrix anywhere.

Suddenly Rod remembered something she had told him about her. She loved rain. But could she possibly be outside in such a storm as the one there was tonight? No witch in her right mind would be out in weather like that, but he knew that Bella wasn't an ordinary bitch either. So, as soon as he realized that he's out of his father's sight, Rodolphus left the ballroom of Lestrange Manor and went outside.

Bellatrix was indeed sitting on the stairs that leaded to the doors of the house. The boy wouldn't recognize her if it wasn't for the dark long hair and the specific way she sat there – completely still, as if she was a statue. He had seen her sitting like that near the lake in the Hogwarts courtyard every time she was angry or upset, or just needed to be alone and thing for some time.

"Bella?" Rod whispered unsurely and approached her slowly. She didn't turn to him; she probably hadn't heard him at all because of the thunder that echoed around in the same instant as he spoke. Or, on the other hand, se could have heard him, but decided to ignore him. That happened pretty often also – oftener that he actually liked to admit. "What are you doing here? It's really cold here and everyone else is on that party…" his voice faded. He didn't know what else to say. She already knew all of these things.

"Shut up, Rod." Bellatrix said, but her voice sounded surprisingly gently for such harsh words and she didn't protest when he unhurriedly sat next to her on the wet stairs without paying any attention to the rain that was still pouring on them without stopping. "I don't want to be there – on that ball, I mean." She admitted; her words barely more than a whisper. "And plus, I like rainy nights."

"I know." Rod said simply. She had told him this before... The familiar comfortable silence fell between them for a few seconds – and he didn't want to ruin it – but he couldn't hold the question he wanted to say out loud. "Why don't you want to be there?" Rod asked curiously. "Don't get me wrong; I'm not offended because it's my house or something like that… It's just that… Your sisters seem to have fun…"

Bellatrix tried to bite back a laugh, but failed.

"My sisters would enjoy every party our parents drag them to. They love being amongst so much people. But I don't." she said indifferently. "They like to dress up like some kind of little princesses also, and that's great for a place like this one – or any other ball I've been to, because they love shining things and fairytale-like Manors... But as it comes to me… it's just… not my kind of thing." Bella said delicately.

It was Rod's turn to laugh. Of course it wasn't her kind of thing. From the time Rodolphus had spent with her, he had learned at least one thing – Bellatrix wanted to be honest in everything she did. It didn't matter for her if she was offending anyone or making them feel uncomfortable as long as she could tell her real opinion on things. And such events as this party weren't exactly the best ones for someone with her habit of saying what she's actually thinking. Almost everyone on these places had their role that they had to keep up. Rodolphus knew she hated that.

"Well…" he hurried to say, just in case she wasn't enjoying his company – the boy could never tell in what mood she was. "If I'm annoying you by sitting with you here or something, I can go back to the party and leave you alone…"

"No." she said quietly, still not looking at him; she was just staring at the garden as the rain kept falling and another thunder almost deafened them. "You can stay."

Rod didn't know what else to say, so he merely kept sitting to her. He wasn't sure what he had to do now. He knew many girls, but knew better than to expect anything from Bellatrix. She could react differently in every single moment, but he was still feeling nice as they just stood there in the stillness of the night with the music somewhere far away in the ballroom and the pouring rain as the only sound around.

"Why do you like it so much?" Rod asked curiously. Bella turned to face him; her brow furrowed questioningly. "The rain, I mean." He said.

"Well… I'm not entirely sure." The girl sighed gently. "I guess it's because of the chaos. Look at it. It's so… powerful. Nothing can stop it, even the most powerful witch or wizard. That's what I like. It's most likely the only thing no person can control. And that's why I admire it." she said simply at least, shrugging as if the answer she gave him wasn't much of a big deal.

But it gave Rodolphus something to think about while she fell silent again. For what he knew about her at all, Bellatrix Black didn't like having around things that may eventually slip from under her control. But… maybe she liked to have an idol, he thought. Something of a… deity that she could admire and something – or someone – she wanted to become like. She spoke of the dreadful storm around them now with the same voice of somewhat fearful awe like in the times she was talking about the Dark Lord, the boy thought subconsciously. Maybe she just liked having one or two things more powerful than her, even _greater_ than her, that made her want to become greater too.

_You're overthinking this stuff,_ Rod told himself. Probably he was completely wrong about what she was thinking – like he could ever guess exactly how her mind worked. Most of the time she utterly surprised him with whatever she did or said.

Suddenly someone appeared from the Lestrange Manor and shadowed the light coming from inside the house. "Bellatrix!" the woman snapped and Rod recognized Druella Black's voice and her magnificent dark hair, just as he daughter's one. "What are you doing here, you stupid girl? Get inside the house, _now_, or else!"

"Mother!" the girl protested without even bothering to stand up from the stairs. "Leave me alone." She murmured, sounding quite dejected. Rod felt himself filling with anger. This woman seemed to ruin the lives of every one of her daughters.

"Sitting here with a man… shame on you!" Druella shouted at Bellatrix, who trembled. Rodolphus couldn't understand why the girl didn't say anything, especially since Druella was really overreacting right now. She had a tendency to answer to every offense in any way and now she was shuddering only because her mother had shouted at her. "Have you learnt nothing from what I've taught you? Get in the house, or else!"

"Or what?" her daughter snapped, losing her temper again. "What will you do?"

But Druella just wordlessly pointed at the house and, with another small sigh, Bellatrix stood up and took Rodolphus's hand. "Come on." She murmured. "Let's get in." Rod obeyed her without saying a word, for he didn't know what else to do. He hadn't seen her losing any argument before and he didn't want to do anything that could make her feel worse right now.

Druella smirked and that seemed to be too much for Bellatrix. She looked at her mother, smiling wickedly and then, tightening her grip on Rod's hand, she pressed him closer to her and kissed him fiercely.

Rod just stood there, stunned, like the biggest idiot on earth, doing nothing neither to stop her nor make the kiss last longer. He couldn't believe what was happening. Everything in this night seemed as some extremely vivid dream. He knew she was doing it just to piss off her mother, but still. He failed to process the information. _He was kissing Bellatrix Black._

"This ends now!" Druella growled and took her daughter away from him, leading her back into the ballroom. "I'll talk to you later." She sneered, but Bellatrix didn't even try to hide the winning expression her face wore right now as she met Rod's eyes.

"Wipe off that dreamy smile, Lestrange." She said teasingly. "And don't get used to it. You know my reasons."

He didn't say anything out loud, because he didn't want Druella to hear him, but mouthed _Oh really?_, still grinning at her daughter, and disappeared in the throng before Bellatrix succeeded in freeing herself from her mother and chasing him down.


End file.
